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FRESH
CHILES
Jalapeño- (cuaresmeño,
gordo, jarocho, huachinago, acorchado, rayado, pinalteco, chilcote,
espinatelco, tornachile, papaloapan candelaria). The best known
of fresh chiles, used grilled or boiled in red and green salsas
with tomatoes or tomatillos, or raw in salsa fresca. They are delicious
stuffed with tuna fish or cheese. Very popular pickled. When smoked,
dried jalapeños become chipotles. Hot to very hot.
Serrano - (verde, tampiqueño,
balin, cora, típico) 2 to 3 inches long by about 1/2 inch.
Widely used for making salsas for the table and to cook savory guisados.
Often eaten raw a bite at a time. Deliciously flavorful. Hot to
very hot.
Güero - (caloro, carricillo,
cristal, cristalino, ixcatic, amarillento) "Blond" is
used to describe most chiles of this particular color. There are
different varieties throughout the country. They tend to have a
conical shape and their color ranges from bright, clear yellow to
pale green. When mature, they range from orange to red. They are
often pickled; sometimes the big ones are stuffed. Some of the varieties
are mild and others can be hot to very hot.
Habanero-
1 to 2 -1/2 inches long by 1 to 2 inches wide. Green to yellow-orange
or orange to deep red, deliciously fragrant with touches of tropical
fruit. Excellent in grilled salsas to season dishes or for the table.
Extremely, extremely hot!
Poblano-(para
rellenar, joto) two varieties, bright green and dark green. One
becomes ancho and the other mulato when dried. Matures to bright,
rich, red colors, about 4 to 5 inches long. Delicious when roasted
to make chiles rellenos or eaten in strips or rajas. Mild to fairly
hot.
Verde del norte-(Anaheim,
Magdalena, New Mexico fresh) 7to 10 inches long by 1 to 2 inches
wide. Bright green to red. The ancestor of this chile originated
in Mexico and was brought to New Mexico in the late 1500s. Used
in stews, sauces, and stuffed. Mild flavor with almost no heat.
Pimienton, - (morron, dulce,
bell) 4 to 6 inches long by 3 to 4 inches wide. Green, red, orange,
yellow, brown and purple in the new varieties
DRIED
CHILES
Ancho -(colóro,
para guisar, pasilla rojo) 4 to 5 inches long by 3 inches wide.
Triangular shape. Red-brown color, especially when looked at through
the light. Wrinkled, prune-like, flexible skin. Acidic, sweet taste.
A very important chile in Mole Poblano and many savory dishes for
color and flavor. Mild to low heat.
Mulato
- A brother of ancho chile. 4 to 5 inches long by 3 inches wide.
Rich, dark brown color. Thick, flexible skin. Deep flavor with chocolate
touches. A very important chile in Mole Poblano. Mild to pleasantly
spicy.
Pasilla -
(Negro, achocolatado, pasilla de México, prieto) When fresh,
this chile is the chilaca chile used roasted for making rajas or
in strips for tacos and other dishes that call for them. It is about
6 to 8 inches long by 1 to 1-1/2 inches wide. It has a deep, dark
brown color and is not very flexible. It can be hot, and possesses
an interesting bitter flavor, with a touch of tobacco, which imparts
a special background flavor to sauces. This chile is a part of the
"holy trinity" - along with ancho and mulato - for the
preparation of the national dish Mole Poblano.
Guajillo-
(guajon, cascabel) 4 to 5 inches long by 1-1/2 inches wide. Red-brown
sepia color with thin, light brown strips that vary from chile to
chile. This chile is similar in shape and color to that of the chile
colorado del norte also known as dried New Mexico or California
but smaller and with the brown strips mentioned above. These chiles
can be substituted for each other. The flavors, however, are different.
(Guajillo chiles are hotter and have a more distinctive, earthy
flavor.) A very popular chile in Mexico, used throughout the republic
to prepare a large number of traditional, home-style dishes. Often
mixed with ancho chile in salsas, adobos, enchiladas, meat and seafood
guisados. Although it is also called cascabel in the Bajio region
of Guanajuato it is important to not get this chile confused with
the round dried cascabel.
Pullla- (guajillo pulla
or hot guajillo) 3 to 4 inches long by 1/2 inch wide with a definite
point. This is a variety of guajillo chile, but hotter. This chile
is also a mirasol when fresh. It is used like guajillos or mixed
to obtain a hotter result.
Colorado- (seco del norte,
New Mexico dried, California) 4 to 5 inches long by 3/4 to 1 inch
wide. This is a very popular dry chile in the Southwest United States
for making Chile Colorado and enchilada sauces and to flavor savory
dishes and stews. It can be substituted for guajillos. Mild flavor
and almost no heat.
Cascabel- Round, about 1
inch in diameter. The seeds inside are often loose, so that when
you shake the chile it sounds like a rattle or "cascabel."
Similar in color to guajillo. The flavor and level of heat is also
similar of that of guajillo, for which it can easily be substituted.
Chipotle Meco - Dried,
ripened jalapeño, ash-brown sepia color. A very popular chile
and very trendy in the U.S. Its smoky, delicious aroma lends itself
to many creative uses in sauces, salsas, marinades and dressings
and to flavor savory dishes and stews. It is often used canned,
pickled in an adobo sauce of tomatoes, vinegar, chiles and spices.
Hot to very hot.
Mora and Morita - Smoked jalapeños, red, earthy
color and smoky aroma. Delicious in salsa made with grilled tomatillos,
garlic and onion.
Arbol Seco - Thin, long chile with a long tail and
bright red, smooth skin. Approximately 2-1/2 inches long. Dry sharp
heat. Its intense heat pairs well with wild purple tomatillos and
in sauces with vinegar to complement soups, stews and snacks.
Piquin - Very small conical shape, about 1/4 inch
long. Intense dry heat - more pungent than that of the arbol chile.
It can be used the same way. This chile - like the tepin - grows
wild in the northern regions of Mexico and Texas.
SPICES
AND HERBS
Mexican cooking employs a variety of common flavorings. In addition
to all the spices of India, we also use many fresh and dried herbs
such as oregano, marjoram, thyme, bay leaves, etc. There are some
unusual flavorings including:
Achiote - Red, hard seeds also know as annatto - a
very traditional flavor used in southern Mexico and throughout Central
America. Its earthy brick color and unusual flavor are typically
used in the preparation of Yucatecan recados, which are base flavor
combinations for the preparation of a number of regional dishes.
Avocado Leaves - Used fresh or dried to flavor tamales,
mole sauces and stews.
Epazote - Used fresh for flavoring beans, soups, stews,
sauces, salsas and quesadillas. Also employed as medicine for stomach
problems.
Hoja Santa - Large, heart-shaped, bright green leaf.
Its licorice-like flavor pairs well with seafood dishes and is used
to wrap tamales and to flavor soups, stews and mole sauces.
Chepil or Chipilin - Small leaf that looks like clover, found only
frozen in the U.S. Has a subtle, elegant flavor - delicious in masa
for tamales and also used in soups and savory dishes.
CORN
Corn is the seed of life in the cultures of Mesoamerica. It was
because of the discovery and domestication of corn that the different
classical cultures developed as we know them today. Corn was the
foundation of the diet for the first Americans. Today, corn continues
to be the most important food in the daily meals of the people of
Mexico. The most common way to consume corn is in the form of tortillas,
our daily bread. To make tortillas, dried corn is first cured by
simmering it in a combination of water and calcium oxide or lime
until is cooked "al dente". It is then left to soak all
night. At this point, corn is transformed into nixtamal, a word
from Nahuatl - the language spoken by the Aztecs. Nixtamal is rinsed
the next day several times to eliminate the strong lime flavor and
to loosen the skins off the kernels of corn. It is then taken to
the local mills to be ground into dough.
MASA FOR TORTILLAS
Masa for tortillas is usually ground very smoothly with only a little
water added to it to bind it together. No other flavor or additional
ingredients are added.
MASA FOR TAMALES
Masa for tamales is ground coarser, from the same nixtamal corn,
with a texture like that of polenta. The rough particles allow more
steam to flow through during the steaming process, resulting in
lighter tamales. Masa for tamales needs to be prepared flavored
with lard, salt, baking soda and stock. In Mexico this is done at
home. In some of the bigger cities here in the U.S., there are places
where you can buy masa preparada para tamales - dough already prepared,
ready to be used for making tamales. You can also use masa for tortillas
for making tamales, but the texture will be different. Please check
the recipe section for my recipe for making your own masa for tamales
using masa harina.
MASA HARINA OR MASECA
This is a dehydrated form of finely ground masa. You just have to
add water to it to prepare dough that you can use for making tortillas.
If you want to make tamales using this dough you will need to flavor
it. Please check my recipe.
HOJAS PARA TAMALES/ DRIED CORN
HUSKS FOR TAMALES
You can buy these at any Mexican market or by mail order. They come
prepackaged, and sometimes are sold loose out of bins. Try to find
selected husks since they are the biggest - easiest to use when
wrapping your tamales. Dried cornhusks need to be soaked to make
them flexible. It is a good idea to rinse them individually to remove
any particles of corn silk. This will help you select the bigger
ones. The small ones can be used as ties.
BANANA LEAVES
Banana leaves are used in the tropics to wrap tamales. You can buy
them frozen. You will need to let them thaw out first, then rinse
and cut to size.
STEAMER
You can improvise a steamer by using a stockpot lined with a colander
or a big strainer. The metal steamers use in Chinese cooking for
dim sum work great and they come in different sizes. Bamboo steamers
are not deep enough. They will not work well.
TORTILLA PRESS
Traditionally, tortillas were made by hand only, but with the invention
of tortilla presses this job has become easier and faster. The best
presses are made with mesquite wood. They are strong, heavy and
stable. Make sure that the press you select closes very evenly flat.
When purchasing a tortilla press, I always take a piece of masa
and a piece of plastic along to test, so I can be sure that the
press will make evenly thick or thin tortillas. There are metal
presses as well, but I prefer the wooden ones.
METATE
In the past, women would usually grind the nixtamal using a metate,
a flat grinder that is made with volcanic rock like the molcajete
(see below). These days, metates are seldom used for this backbreaking
task. However, they are useful for grinding cocoa beans into chocolate,
mole ingredients and meats.
MOLCAJETE
A molcajete is a very useful tool. When buying one, make sure that
it is made of strong rock and has a deep well shape and even legs
for good stability. You will need to season your malcajete by grinding
dry rice several times in it to loosen the particles of rock off
the surface. The idea is to make the inside as smooth as possible.
Wash it using a brush and then apply a light coating of vegetable
oil. Leave it oiled over night and wash it again to remove the oil.
Your molcajete will be ready. The more you use it the better seasoned
it will become.
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